Amazon Technologies, Inc.

John Joseph Enright

Peter R Wurman

Joseph W Durham

Michael Cordell Mountz

Michael Harrison Decker

Jeremiah David Brazeau

Eryk Brian Nice

Jonathan Harris Schechter

Pardeep Singh Farwaha

Ryan Alexander Holt

Alex Glazkov

Jared Brian Holcomb

Ishan Mukherjee

Gavin Cotter

Robert Raymond Ambrogi

Gabriel Hebert

Timothy Aaron Bragg

Fahrudin Alagic

Ibolya Horvath

Stephen Charles Paschall

Sadat Ali Shaik

Jaimie Marie-Michelle Carlson

Disclosed are various embodiments for optimizing robot utilization in autonomous mobile robots by accounting for the battery charge state when assigning missions to be performed by the autonomous mobile robots in a material handling facility. In particular, mission data associated with one or more missions and robot data including a battery charge state associated with one or more robots can be analyzed to determine a robot mission assignment that accounts for battery state charge in order to maximize robot utilization and productivity of material handling tasks.

Battery charge state based mission assignment for autonomous mobile robots

Systems and methods are disclosed for improved endpoint approach and localization for autonomous mobile robots. In one embodiment, an example system may include a floor-mounted guide disposed on a floor of an environment, and an autonomous mobile robot having a camera and a controller. The autonomous mobile robot may be configured to autonomously navigate in the environment, where the controller can be configured to detect a first edge of the floor-mounted guide using the camera, detect a second edge of the floor-mounted guide using the camera, determine a location of the autonomous mobile robot based at least in part on the first edge and the second edge, and update a navigation path based at least in part on the location.

Endpoint approach and localization for autonomous robotic vehicles

An inventory system can include a workspace in which is defined different areas and different stations at which tasks can be performed. A receipt receptacle received from a shipping vehicle can be moved to a rack without separating items from the receipt vehicle. A mobile drive unit can move the rack to an area on the workspace depending on information known about the items. Items from the receipt receptacle can be removed from the receipt receptacle and placed in inventory holders for movement or storage or in other receptacles for performance of other tasks such as order processing.

Inventory system with efficient operator handling of inventory items

An inventory system can include multiple floors. The system can assign operations involving inventory items to a floor based on information about the floor, other floors, the operations, and/or the inventory items. In one example, the system may assign an order to be assembled on a floor based on the floor containing items for the order. Items may be moved to the floor from other floors to complete the order. In another example, a receipt receptacle received from a shipping vehicle can be moved to a rack without separating inventory items from the receipt vehicle. A mobile drive unit can move the rack to a floor based on information known about the inventory items matching criteria about the floor.

Inventory holders in an inventory system can be moved among differing storage positions. The moves can be performed by mobile drive units not otherwise transporting inventory holders directly to or from inventory stations. A free mobile drive unit can move an inventory holder not likely to be useful soon at any nearby station from a storage position near the station to a position farther away from the station. A mobile drive unit can move an inventory holder likely to be useful soon from a storage position farther away from one or more stations to a storage position nearby one or more stations.

Re-arrange stored inventory holders

An inventory system includes inventory holders, container holders, containers carried by the container holders, mobile drive units, stations, and a management module. The management module instructs the mobile drive units to move the inventory holders and container holders to stations. Container holders are loaded with containers of inbound inventory items at a first station. Inbound inventory items are transferred from containers to inventory holders at a second station. Outbound inventory items are transferred from inventory holders to containers at a third station. Containers of outbound inventory items are removed from container holders at a fourth station.

Container holder utilization and selection

An inventory system can receive a receipt receptacle from a shipping vehicle. The receipt receptacle can be moved to a case shuttle without separating or sorting inventory items in the receipt receptacle. A mobile drive unit can move the case shuttle to a receiving station, where the receipt receptacle can be removed and where the inventory items can be stowed in a pickable inventory holder. A mobile drive unit can move the pickable inventory holder to an order-compiling station, where inventory items can be picked from the inventory holder into order receptacles. A mobile drive unit can move an order shuttle carrying order receptacles with completed orders to a shipping station, where the completed order receptacles can be transferred to a shipping vehicle.

Growing community of inventors

Somerville, MA, United States of America

John Joseph Enright